


House Vestra's War

by zmiyaa



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Gen, Post-CF, Post-Canon, Slow Burn, Unrequited Love, Worldbuilding, some gothic fiction inspo, trying to flesh out the war against TWSitD with some scifi themes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:42:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28053354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zmiyaa/pseuds/zmiyaa
Summary: After the events of Crimson Flower, Edelgard and Hubert begin their shadow war against those who slither in the dark. At the same time, they begins to feel the consequences of the war against the Church of Seiros.--------“I… I think that makes sense. I suppose humanity is not really an absolute quality you can possess, but it’s more a role you can fulfill. If she was able to fall in love with my father, and him with her… I suppose those are things only a human could do.”“Precisely. So, if it’s a crisis of identity you’re having, Byleth, know this: you’re as good as human to me. Whether that brings you any solace, I don’t know.”
Relationships: Dorothea Arnault/Edelgard von Hresvelg, Edelgard von Hresvelg & Hubert von Vestra, Edelgard von Hresvelg & My Unit | Byleth, My Unit | Byleth/Hubert von Vestra
Comments: 3
Kudos: 29





	1. To the End of a Dream

**Author's Note:**

> This was a project for NaNoWriMo 2020. It's a pretty self-indulgent write up of my personal headcanon for what happens after the Empire wins the war against the church haha, so I tied in some sciencey themes that interest me to try and come up with a plan for them to take out the Agarthans. This is very Hubert-focused, most chapters are from his PoV, but Edelgard's PoV makes an appearance as well. I'm trying to build up the romance a bit more slowly in the background.
> 
> I wanted to call out some great reddit posts that inspired a lot of the ideas for this fic, I did a lot of lurking haha. Specifically some great analysis posts by u/SexTraumaDental and u/captainflash89 inspired me a lot, and this was a great post too:
> 
> https://old.reddit.com/r/fireemblem/comments/e1ojsm/hubert_and_edelgard_relationship_analysis/

Hubert paused to observe his opponent before approaching. The swordswoman moved like a furious storm, slashing down hordes of opponents with a blade shining brighter than the flames engulfing the city around them. It was time for him to take on Thunder Catherine, wielder of Thunderbrand. Imperial soldiers were dying by the minute as she cut through them, but Hubert knew he could not afford to be hasty. He had the advantage, wielding a long-distance weapon, but one small misstep and he would be swiftly decapitated.

Before arriving at Catherine’s location, the group of three had struggled through the flaming streets of Fhirdiad, and had almost reached the top. An inhuman roar bellowed over them, drowning out the roar of the flames. They had almost reached their final target. They made steady progress until, at the turn of the stairs, a whirlwind of activity played out in the hallway before them. The professor immediately recognized their enemy.

“Catherine... We’ve almost reached the Immaculate One. We can’t afford to have Catherine running at our backs while we’re taking her down, we’ll have to take her out in advance.” She paused for a moment to consider their options. “Hubert, do you think you can take out Catherine with your magic? I’ll scout out a different route so the two of us can proceed to Rhea’s position.”

“That sounds like a wise plan, professor,” Hubert agreed. The plan was logical, and even though he was loath to leave Edelgard’s side at this final moment, he knew it was the better strategic decision. He turned to the Emperor and fell to his knee, conscious of the fact that this could be the last time they saw each other. “Your majesty… The time has come to seize your destiny. I know you will not fail.”

The emperor followed her teacher, but turned back to say farewell to her old friend. “Thank you Hubert, I’ll see you on the other side.”

Edelgard seemed surprised that some emotion had crept into his voice. Hubert was not normally an emotional person. The professor had leapt onto her pegasus once again, eager to get going.

“El, there’s a path we can take here,” she called out.

The two women had vanished down a side street of the capital. Hubert was left facing his solitary task.

Having decided his course of action, he urged his horse forward, galloping up the cobblestone street past the swordswoman just as she was distracted by another group of Imperial soldiers. Simultaneously, he spun up his first charge of dark magic. This allowed him to reach the high ground just above where she fought, giving him a clean line of sight to where Catherine stood. She noticed him immediately, realizing that worthier prey had arrived, she spun on her heels. She raised her sword and started towards him with no delay.

However, her attack came too late, for Hubert’s spell was ready. With a decisive gesture he sent it forward, and Catherine was quickly engulfed by a vortex of dark orbs and a horrible screeching sound, knocking her off her feet. He maneuvered his horse back a few steps, making sure the magic had landed. Catherine was back up in an instant, and raised her sword again, but as she tried to lurch towards him, her face fell in dismay. It was as if a force held her back, slowing her movement forward. Hubert smiled, confirming that his incantation had hit its mark.

A grimace spread over her face, she looked determined and downright murderous.

“I will pour everything into this blade--My body, my soul,” she called out. “Thunderbrand rumbles, urging me on. I am the goddess’ servant!”

“The goddess’ servant. My, my.” Hubert quipped back. “The goddess has not seemed terribly competent, so forgive me for not putting much faith in her followers either.”

“You traitorous bastard! You and your disgusting mistress will feel the goddess’ wrath for your lies. You will taste my blade!”

Undaunted by the magical miasma holding her back, she brandished her sword towards him once more.

Readying his next spell, he urged his horse forward, closing the distance between them slightly so he could hit his mark. He spurred his horse to rear up, the animal let out a fearful bellow as Hubert raised his arms above his head, lifting the dark magic and bringing it down, thrusting it in the direction of Catherine’s head. He kept his eyes on his opponent as his horse came down, the forward momentum carrying them both forward. To his dismay, he watched as Catherine nimbly rolled out of the spell’s path: she had hit the ground and in an incredible feat of athleticism bounded right back up and into the path Hubert’s horse was heading towards. She cracked a grin as she saw him heading towards her and raised Thunderbrand in the air, clearly prepared to bring it down on his head. The horse’s momentum was too great for him to change course, and he could not avoid barrelling straight towards her blade.

Reacting instinctually, he reached for his one remaining weapon, the lance he wore at his side, the Arrow of Indra. Having participated in fencing tournaments in the empire capital, he was well-practiced at the technique of running down an opponent at a distance on horseback. Catherine was still slowed by the spell, and he hoped that would be enough to allow him to pierce her before she could dodge and retaliate. Brandishing the lance with both hands, he held it in front of him as far as possible, hoping to outrange Thunderbrand. He let out a wild laugh as the lance crackled with dark magic. As he wielded it, Catherine raised her blade as he approached, but she was too late. She let out a sickened gasp as the magic blade pierced through her armor like it was nothing, the magical spear sinking through the metal as if it were as thin as a sheet of parchment. However, even though she had been impaled, she still managed to bring down her final blow. Hubert twisted his arms to exert torque on the lance, spinning her at the end of it, and managed to slightly deflect her blow. It missed his skull and came down on his shoulder instead, catching between plates of his armor and slicing his arm.

He tumbled from his horse, clutching his shoulder, but she lay on the ground, gasping. Catherine would not rise again. He pulled the lance back, readying it for another blow.

“Are you going to torture me now? You despicable rat...” she spat at him, saliva tinged red.

Hubert looked down at his opponent, letting the lance fall to his side as he realized she was incapacitated. Coughing, her head fell to the ground once more.

“I suppose, in the end, we’re not so different, you and me. Heh.”

Hubert’s lips curled up in disgust at the woman’s words. “You waste your last words on such nonsense?”

“I assume the emperor took you in like Lady Rhea helped me… Lady Rhea… My service ends here. It’s been an honour.” she let out in a rasping breath, her gaze falling towards the central square of Fhirdiad, where her mistress was fighting.

She would be dead in a moment, and there was no need to waste time. Instead of leaving her to die slowly from the grisly wound piercing her chest, he readied a quick Miasma spell and sent it directly to her head. The spell interfered with the body’s nerve activity, and it provided a quick and painless death.

Now that he was no longer in danger, he turned his attention back to his surroundings. Imperial and church forces clashed around him, some of them his own Vestra engineers who were sending off dark spells, giving off sparks of purple glow amidst the red light of the flames. Above the din another murderous roar sounded, reminding him that he needed to hasten to his liege’s side. Using only one hand, he gripped the saddle of his horse and climbed back up, urging his steed forward and up the staircase towards where the two women fought the monstrous dragon.

As he sped forward, he observed the surrounding battle from horseback. Many bodies lay in the streets of the city, bearing both church and imperial colours. He galloped down a narrow cobblestone street with apartments looming on both sides. He wondered briefly how the inhabitants were faring, but he knew there was no time to dwell on that now. Rounding the corner, he turned to face a stone bridge across a canal. He had pored over the maps of Fhirdiad tirelessly in preparation for the battle, and he knew that this was the last stretch he had to cross before he would be at the main plaza. Most of the church soldiers had been cleared out of this area, but he did notice some falcon knights hovering in the distance. He hoped to outrun them.

In the distance, he saw an aerial battle play out. By the number of pegasi pursuing the wyvern rider, he supposed it was the troops they had sent to take out Cyril. Finally, the wyvern fell from the sky, pierced by an arrow from below. The Imperial forces seemed to be pressing steadily forward.

He could not see much due to the smoke, flames, and rubble obscuring his view, but he urged his horse to a dangerous gallop, doding the piles of debris. His mind raced, unable to be calm amidst the chaos surrounding him. What would he find when he made it to the city centre? He was certain this would be the end of their fight against the church, but who would be the victor? His horse galloped at full speed, almost passing by the bottom of the staircase that led to the main plaza of Fhirdiad. He wheeled his horse to an abrupt stop. At the top of the stairs, a huge, hulking white mass was visible, and two figures were on the ground. He leapt off his horse, crying out.

“Lady Edelgard!”

He rushed up the steps, paying no heed to his injured arm, singed robes, or slight limp, conjuring a fireball in his palm. His full attention was focused on the two figures on the ground in front of him. With relief, he saw that the Emperor was seated and appeared to be alive, the professor was lying in her arms. At that moment, all of the sense of dread in his body melted away. He was not too late. In an instant, it was replaced with the firm resolve to keep her alive. Magic at the ready, he fixed his attention on his next target: the Immaculate One. The dragon seemed to be sprawled out on the ground, he couldn’t see any signs of movement, but out of caution he sprinted to the other side of the plaza and placed himself in between the dragon and the two women.

He paused. The dragon did not seem to stir. Cautiously, he turned back to Edelgard.

“Is she...” he gasped, out of breath.

“She’s dead, Hubert. It’s over”

He let out a sigh, and the magic flame extinguished itself in an instant. He turned to face the emperor where she was crouched on the ground. With relief, he saw that she didn’t seem to be crouched over in pain, he saw no blood on her, and she seemed to be unharmed.

“And the professor?”

“I’m still alive,” came Byleth’s voice, managing to lift her head from Edelgard’s lap and giving a weak grin.

Hubert let out the last of the breath he had been holding. “I’m glad to hear that too.”

“Where are the rest of our troops?” Edelgard asked, “Cyril was holding down the fort to the East, should we advance...”

“Cyril is dead,” Hubert interrupted. “And so is Catherine. I suggest we order the troops to withdraw. We should attempt to evacuate some of the citizens that remain in the city as well. While the troops return to our base they should accompany any citizens they find and help to find a safe path through the debris.”

“Thank you Hubert, yes, we’ll proceed with that plan,” Edelgard nodded. She turned to Byleth, whose back still rested against her arm. “Well, I suppose we should get going then, professor? And try to find some of the officers...” she asked softly, slowly withdrawing the support of her arm.

“Yes,” Byleth replied as she made a shaky effort to stand up. “I should really get to helping Dorothe---agh!” Her attempt at speaking was cut off as she swayed dangerously, losing her balance. Edelgard caught the professor’s arm, holding it steady.

“You can barely stand,” the Emperor pleaded, “Let me assist you!”

At the sight of Edelgard struggling to stand, Hubert stepped forward. He knew she wouldn’t be happy if he cut in ahead of her, but his fear about her health was too great to allow him to stand back.

“Lady Edelgard, you’re injured as well. It would be a disaster if you overexerted yourself after the decisive battle. Allow me to assist you, I can help the professor.”

“Hubert, don’t be ridiculous, you’re barely standing yourself, and what happened to your arm?” Edelgard countered. “I’m the less injured one between us two, I insist.”

Neither of them had noticed that Byleth had already begun walking away from them.

“I’ll manage on my own,” she muttered, shrugging them both off. She walked towards the edge of the plaza, looking around. “Where is my pegasus?”

The two left behind watched tensely. Edelgard released a deep sigh as the professor seemed to find her footing. At the same time, Hubert realized the absurdity of the situation, how they had fallen so quickly into bickering while they were still in the midst of wrapping up this battle, his own obsessive nature in conflict with her wishes. He turned away from both of them to resume his survey of their surroundings. Edelgard set off to follow the professor. Hubert stole another glance at the dragon’s corpse, looming large behind them.

“Hubert, are you coming?” the Emperor asked, looking back from just ahead.

“We’ll need to secure this area promptly,” he gestured at the looming body of the Immaculate One. “I’ll need to oversee the preparations. You two should go on ahead.”

“Will you be alright here by yourself?”

“Yes, I think it’s quite safe. All the enemy generals have been defeated. And, I’ll need to direct my sorcerers after all.” He gestured at the battalion of sorcery engineers that had caught up with him. They waited at the bottom of the steps. “There are several cloaking spells we need to prepare and-”

Before he could finish, Edelgard turned to face her old friend, and then grabbed him quickly in a tight embrace.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Hubert.”

His cheeks coloured, but he knew the flickering light from the flames would camouflage that fact. The moment of physical contact gave him confidence. Edelgard was really alive, a tangible physical form, and Rhea was really dead on the ground in front of them. “I… I can’t quite believe it’s finished. Not that I ever thought you were incapable-” he quickly corrected. “But to see our plans come to fruition…”

“Yes, I’m so glad it’s over.”

“Well, partially. Now we’ll have to see if our gamble paid off...”


	2. Network Insecurity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit hard to write Byleth since they don't have much of a personality in canon, haha. I like to believe that Byleth is actually a competent strategist, kind of like a Robin-type character. So that's my version that I'm using here.

In Enbarr, several weeks had passed since the final battle. Emperor Edelgard had assembled the top healers and leading crest scholars in the empire to investigate Byleth’s condition. They were intrigued by how she seemed to have lost her crest altogether. Hanneman in particular had demanded much of the professor’s time, eager to continue his research on creating a general mechanism of removing unwanted crests. He had pulled her into a private room for one of these examinations. Edelgard refused to leave the professor’s side, and of course, Hubert always accompanied the Emperor, so the three of them were all assembled around Byleth’s chair.

“It’s really a shame that the archbishop is dead,” Hanneman sighed. “Several years ago, soon after you received the power of the progenitor god, I remember her keen interest in you. It seemed she was in possession of some knowledge about your past. She could have been the key to understanding your condition. Your crest was exceedingly rare. I am very interested to know how exactly it was that you came to possess it. If we had taken her alive, we could have questioned her on the topic, but now, it may be a mystery to us forever.”

The emperor sighed. “Believe me Hanneman, if I could have taken her alive, I would have. We offered them the chance to surrender before entering Fhirdiad, but she refused all negotiation. There was no other way we could have won. Attempting to spare her would only have prolonged the fighting and left more citizens of Fhirdiad to perish in the flames.”

“I know, I’m not blaming you, your majesty. I’m simply lamenting the learning opportunity that was lost to us.”

Hubert joined in from the sidelines, where he was observing the conversation. Of course, he had left the detailed examination to Hanneman. The thought of observing Byleth from up close gave him a strange, uncomfortable feeling in his stomach. However, he was keenly interested in anything they could learn about the power of crests. Any secret knowledge that Rhea possessed would be incredibly useful to them. Since she had been in conflict with their enemies for many years, it was likely the monastery hid some knowledge that could be used against them.

“Perhaps the archbishop kept some notes that we have yet to discover. We should conduct a thorough search of the monastery to see if we can find anything useful on the subject. It is too early to conclude that the information is lost to us forever...”

“But Hubert,” Hanneman asked. “We have been using the monastery as our base for the last five years. Surely we’ve already thoroughly covered Garreg Mach and discovered anything there is to discover.”

“On the contrary, Hanneman. There are many hidden depths to the monastery that we have not yet explored. We were fighting a war after all, and our resources were predisposed elsewhere. I’m certain there are many traps laid for those who dare to unearth the monastery’s mysteries, and we lacked the spare manpower to investigate.”

“We should prepare an investigation force immediately,” Edelgard commanded from her seat next to the professor. “Hubert, can you assemble some allies and-”

“I’ll go,” Byleth interjected from her seat. “I… Rhea trusted me. I’m not altogether sure why, or what exactly I meant to her. But, I may be able to understand her, or have some ideas on what she left behind.”

“Professor, you’re much too weak to travel,” Edelgard protested. “Your heart is still weak. If you were to find yourself in combat, you’d be defenseless.”

“I know I’m still building up strength, but I’ve made great progress. I’ve been walking farther and farther every day, and I can even keep up a brisk pace for a bit. I’m still getting used to it, but I must persevere.”

“Indeed, all my measurements seem to indicate that the professor has a normal cardiovascular capacity, albeit a somewhat weak one.” Hanneman backed up her observations helpfully. “But, with her training, her heart seems to be growing stronger. I’m sure if she continues her training, she’ll get back into shape for combat. It’s truly fascinating how her heart remained healthy during all that time. It’s a medical miracle that it’s able to support her now.”

“But she’s not back in combat shape yet.”

As they discussed plans, Hubert could detect the irritation in the professor’s voice. He supposed Byleth was unaccustomed to having people fret over her. After all, while everyone was worrying about her the most, she was absent and lying at the bottom of some ditch in goddess-knows-where. During her time as a mercenary, he imagined that Jeralt had raised her to be self-sufficient. Edelgard was unaccustomed to having people question her orders, as Hubert knew all too well. He was concerned that the situation would devolve into an argument, which troubled him since he had come to rely on Byleth as a trusted confidant of Edelgard’s. Their relationship seemed to benefit Edelgard, and he tried to encourage it as much as possible. But before he could intervene, they were interrupted.

A cloaked mage entered the room and beckoned to Hubert, who rose quickly to meet him. Edelgard and Byleth dropped their conversation and observed the intruder with concern. Hubert strode to a private corner of the room with his subordinate, where they spoke in hushed tones.

“Lord Vestra, sir,” the mage began. “I have dire news. The dragon’s remains are gone.”

Hubert’s heart sank to the bottom of his stomach and all worries about petty bickering left his mind. One of his great fears had come to pass.

“When did this happen? Are you quite certain?”

“Just a moment ago,” the mage explained. “Ekaterina had checked the room about an hour ago and had been on watch outside. I arrived to relieve her of her duty, and when we went inside to inspect the room, the corpse was gone. She went to gather the others, and I came straight to you.”

“Are there any signs of forced entry?”

“I’m not sure sir, like I said, I came directly here. Ekaterina went to gather the others so they could begin to conduct an investigation.”

“Good. Join the others. I’ll be there shortly.”

The mage gave a quick bow and hurried out of the room.

“Something terrible has happened,” Edelgard said at once, noticing his scowl as he returned to the group.

“As I feared, they have recovered the remains.” He spoke calmly but he clutched the back of a chair with white knuckles. “I… my protections were not enough. I have failed.”

“And what now?”

“We must act with haste,” he explained, glancing around the room to ensure the location was secure. Only his trusted allies were present, so he continued. “If they have time to create a new weapon…”

“It would be devastating.” Edelgard finished his sentence. Her voice was full of concern, but Hubert noted it held no fear. He had seldom heard fear in her voice since she had returned to him with white hair. In its absence, he had become her fear out of his own sense of necessity, spending endless nights poring over every detail that could possibly go wrong. He had, of course, anticipated this course of events; the enemy would inevitably pursue the remains of the last Nabateans with all their might. Still, his heart pounded in his chest from the despair he now felt, and it worked to spur him into action.

“I have no time to wait around and recover,” Byleth interjected, standing up. “We have to act now, before our enemy makes a preemptive strike. Hubert, Edelgard, you’ll have much more important things to plan. I’ll head to the monastery and search for any information about Rhea’s magic we can capitalize on. I’ll take Constance, since she knows her way around the tunnels of Garreg Mach, and she’s an expert at recognizing useful magical research. We’ll use stealth and not force. We’ll just be there to recover documents, not fight, so I’ll be fine.”

Edelgard looked somewhat taken aback by the professor’s speech, but she did not protest any further. Byleth’s words were convincing, and Hubert had to admire the fluent logic of her arguments.

“Indeed, we don’t have much time,” he mused. “That seems like a solid plan to me, if I may offer my opinion. In any case, I must hasten away for now. Any traces our enemy might have left could be fading away at this very moment.”

“I’ll let you know what I decide,” Edelgard responded. “I’ll have to consider the professor’s health, but… I agree that we may not have much of a choice.”

Hubert gave a curt bow and hurried away. His first stop needed to be the room where Rhea’s body had been lying just earlier that day. As he descended the stairs of the palace and approached the room, he could hear the nervous chatter of his sorcery engineers up ahead. They had already begun attempting to trace the movements of the enemy and deduce how they got into the room.

“Have you discovered anything yet?” Hubert asked the nearest engineer, a man named Victor who was crouched in the corner with a pronged device that looked like a divining rod.

“Not much,” he replied. “There was no physical damage to the room. Ekaterina was posted by the door the whole time and saw nothing, so they can’t have used it as a means of egress. The walls are all intact, and the corpse was huge, so they must have removed it using magical means.”

“And did the systems detect anything?”

“No, my lord. We didn’t hear any alarms.”

Hubert had no reason to doubt their account. He knew the security system he had devised had many shortcomings. It worked by directing magical signals along a line through sensitive areas, and any disturbances caused by an activity such as opening a door would propagate along the line. A magical receiver could sense disturbances and sound an alarm. This system had its uses, but it also had its limitations: the magical signal passing through was not secured by any means, and was susceptible to outside manipulation. Of course, their enemies possessed significant dark magic prowess.

“I’ve been a despicable fool. We should have disposed of the corpse when we had the chance.” Hubert felt almost lightheaded as the blood seemed to rush out of his face. “I was too tempted by the research we could carry out… I thought I had taken the necessary precautions, but… it was clearly much too tempting of a target. I fell victim as well. I thought, if perhaps we could stumble upon the secret to creating a relic first, we might have a chance against...”

“But we have been able to carry out valuable research, sir. There are many samples that we’re currently analyzing. It wasn’t all for naught.”

“In hindsight, we were fools to ever think we could prevent them from retrieving it.” Hubert sighed, leaning in the door frame for a moment. “None of the precautions we took could stand a chance against their magic.”

“Perhaps.” The engineer looked down at his feet, as if he didn’t want to comment.

“Well, I suppose it can’t be helped now. All we can do is move forward. And we must move swiftly, time is most certainly not on our side now. If they are able to use the Archbishop’s remains to create a new weapon, considering that they insisted on collecting the hero’s relics we recovered from the Alliance… we cannot allow that to pass.”

“A weapon?”

Hubert paused, wondering if he had revealed too much. He had not explained to Victor or the other engineers what he had recently learned about relics. It was something he came across in a collection of books that had been banned from the monastery.

“Yes. I have seen information that suggests that in the past, powerful weapons were created out of the bones of ‘a massive creature comparable to a wyvern,’ but with incomparable strength. Does that sound familiar to you?”

Victor paused to consider this new information. Hubert had already shared this information with Edelgard, which she did not find surprising given she already possessed secret information about the ten elites that was passed down from Emperor Wilhelm. But sharing it widely could cause an uproar they could not afford at the moment. For the moment, they had even decided to hide the new information from the professor. Edelgard had feared that suddenly discovering that she was wielding the desecrated corpse of her ancestors might give her too much of a shock in her weakened condition.

Hubert deeply resented that the church had kept so much information hidden for millennia… but he could recognize that now was not the most opportune moment to let such secrets come to light. The damage of keeping the public in the dark for so long had already been done, so a few more months wouldn’t do more harm. Perhaps the crest scholars of the Empire could publish an exposé on the topic, to demonstrate how scientific freedom would now flourish under Edelgard’s rule... 

“How long do you think we have before they could create such a weapon?”

“That, I do not know. Although… I suspect we have one advantage: our enemies’ hubris may be their downfall. They don’t see us as a threatening opponent, so they may not feel rushed to develop it. They’ll likely want to take some time to perform research and experiment. So, if we strike quickly, we may have a chance.”

“Sir,” came a voice from across the room, “I’ve found a magical signature here, I haven’t seen this one before.”

“Record it at once.,” Hubert called out to the other engineer.

“Already done. We’ve got the records of everything we detected in this room.”

“Good. Let’s hope they’ll be of use in the future.”


	3. The Archbishop's Study

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> El and Byleth meet up with Dorothea at Garreg Mach, where they are hoping to find some of the Archbishops's secrets that could help them in the upcoming fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Meant to do more editing over the holidays but did not. I feel like it's way easier to get stuff done when you have the pressure of work deadlines limiting your free time, haha. Anyways, an Edelgard POV chapter.

After much argument and deliberation, Edelgard had agreed to let Byleth travel to Garreg Mach. However, she had refused to let her go alone and insisted on traveling with her. The professor seemed concerned about this, and had wondered whether the Emperor had many other pressing duties to attend to. But, Edelgard insisted that she needed to make the trip anyways in order to speak to some imperial generals posted at Garreg Mach. In any case, Hubert was in charge of plotting their next move at the moment. Edelgard figured that her time would be best spent gathering their allies and making sure they were prepared for whatever strike he decided to make.

The final party consisted of Byleth, Edelgard, and Constance. To save time, they had decided to travel by pegasus carriage. The three of them were packed into the small compartment, flying high above the Airmid river. Luckily, they were all small women. Pegasus travel was the quickest way to get around, but the delicate animals could not handle heavy loads, so they carried almost no luggage with them.

“It’s nice to be able to draw back the curtains for once,” Edelgard remarked, peering out at the landscape below. “Hubert always makes me keep them closed for the whole trip.”

“Your servant has the audacity to make demands of the Emperor herself?” Constance cried in shock. “What uncouth behaviour! Your majesty should be able to travel as you please.”

“Well, he would never make any demands on me outright,” Edelgard laughed. “I just noticed that he always took the care to close them on entering the carriage, and when I opened them he would turn absolutely green. I think he may have a fear of heights.”

“Interesting,” Byleth commented. “I wouldn’t have guessed that about him. I wonder if repeated exposure and easing him into it would help remedy that. If he could get over his fear, he’d make an excellent Dark Flier...”

“It’s not exactly very manly for a man to ride a pegasus though, is it?” Constance remarked. “It’s traditional that only women can fly on pegasi.”

Edelgard pondered that statement. She smirked.

“Traditions were meant to be broken. I don’t see a reason why Hubert wouldn’t make an excellent pegasus knight.” A sudden image of Hubert seated on a white pegasus, wearing the traditional garb, tights and all, popped into her head. She let out a snort, and her two companions started laughing too. “Okay, perhaps his… menacing style wouldn’t quite suit it. But I’m sure we could update the uniform to something more gender-neutral...”

It felt good to laugh with friends for a moment. The mood of their company had been quite black as of late. With the news of Rhea’s body going missing, a dark sense of urgency had fallen over them. It was a reminder that their enemies were still present. Edelgard alone feared the weapon they could be constructing at that very moment. Although she had felt conflicted about whether or not to keep the information secret, she felt glad her companions did not yet feel the same despair. Even though the professor did not yet know the truth, she seemed pensive and downcast. It seemed that along with Rhea, their main opportunity to learn about her past died as well. Edelgard lamented the fact that it had to end this way.

She peered through the window as they approached the foothills of the Oghma mountains. The setting sun cast a golden light on the territories that used to belong to the Alliance to the north of the river. They were past Myrddin territory, and this piece of land near the mountains was sparsely populated. It held a very old and tangled forest.

“It’s hard to believe all this land now belongs to the Empire,” she remarked. “It’s a bit of a shame, really. Claude would have made a great ally. I wish he hadn’t chosen to defend the church, goddess knows they would have cast him away as an outsider as soon as they had a chance.”

“Perhaps,” Byleth commented. “But it’s best not to dwell on regrets. In battle, you have to be decisive.”

“Indeed. And, after all, we were able to achieve our objective. I am eternally grateful for your assistance, my teacher.”

“I barely did anything. It was all you, El.” Byleth smiled. “You commanded the movements of the entire Imperial army.”

“Nonsense. You directed many units on the ground in tactics. You inspired the other students. And… you supported me. I’m afraid to think what I might have become if I didn’t have you by my side.”

“Ooh, how touching!” Constance interjected “Yes, I’m grateful for all the support and combat training you gave me, professor! You were an invaluable resource.”

At that moment Edelgard really wished Constance was not in the carriage with them. Byleth gave out a chuckle.

“Really, I’m touched that you think so highly of me. But, I was barely able to give you any guidance before simply vanishing for five years. During that time, you took your resolve and transformed it into what you needed to whole-heartedly pursue your goals... I still believe that’s mostly your doing.”

Edelgard felt her ears flush. She glanced down at her lap, and then at the professor once more. Changing the subject, she knit her brows in concern.

“Professor, you look a bit pale. Are you feeling quite alright?”

The professor paused to dab at some sweat that was forming at her brow.

“I’m feeling a little bit lightheaded. I think it must be due to the altitude. But I’ll be fine.”

“Yes, we’re nearly there,” Edelgard agreed. “I believe that we will start our descent shortly.”

The carriage descended on Garreg Mach from the east, following the path the Airmid river carved through the mountain range as it trickled down from its origin spring, before turning towards the monastery. The three women got a sweeping view of the familiar spires and buildings through the carriage window as they turned to make their approach. They landed a short way away from the monastery. Byleth and Edelgard enjoyed the fresh mountain air as they stepped out of the vehicle, but Constance entered her usual depressed state. It was noticeably colder than it had been in Enbarr at this altitude, but springtime was warming the land and it was still a pleasant temperature.

After detaching the cart, the pegasus handler took the animals directly to the monastery’s roomy stables. He departed directly and flew over with the second pegasus in tow, leaving the three women to make their own way up the monastery steps. As they ascended, Edelgard was glad to see that Byleth was handling the physical exertion fairly well. She still had colour in her cheeks, though some sweat beaded at her brow, she was able to continue steadily. She must have been telling the truth about taking on additional training to increase her stamina.

Taking the pedestrian route up to the monastery reminded Edelgard of the time she had first returned with Byleth, many years ago now. Back then, she was highly interested in the mysterious mercenary’s background, her potential connection with Rhea, her combat prowess… And perhaps she was enticed by her beauty, just a little bit, right off the bat. But, that was all a long time ago. It frustrated her to think that so many mysteries about the professor still remained, and would perhaps remain forever. Even more, it was all because of her own plans.

A familiar face was there to greet them at the top of the steps. Dorothea had shed her winter cloak to greet the clear day and was wearing a simple blue robe. She seemed to have been waiting for them and she ran over to greet them as soon as she spotted them. First of all, she rushed to pull Edelgard into a familiar embrace 

“Edie! I had no idea you were coming with the professor! How delightful to see all of you!”

“Dorothea,” the Emperor greeted her warmly. “The pleasure is mine. How has your post been? I’m sorry to keep you out here, but we needed an expert mage to manage such an important communications hub, and Hubert determined you were the best woman for the job. I tried to protest because I wanted to keep you in Enbarr, but you know how he gets.”

This was partially a lie. To be honest, Edelgard hadn’t really argued with Hubert, or even really looked at the proposals he had waved under her nose on how to distribute their manpower after the final battle. She had been too exhausted, and too concerned for the professor’s health to focus on anything else. She had to wonder at how that man never paused for a second, ignoring his own injuries to ensure the march of progress went ever on. However, she didn’t want Dorothea to feel as though she’d been snubbed. If Edelgard had been paying attention, she likely would have protested: not many other important generals or ministers were posted at the monastery currently, so it probably looked like they were purposefully leaving Dorothea out. Keeping up the morale of allies was important… But Edelgard had to admit she was worried about offending one of her dearest friends as well.

“I understand completely,” Dorothea responded. Edelgard couldn’t quite read her tone. The diva was, of course, an excellent actress, and if she wanted to conceal how she truly felt, she could pull it off no problem. “I’m so glad to see you all, Constance, Professor,” she addressed them in turn. “It’s been a bit sad seeing the monastery so empty, compared to how lively it was back in old times. I’ve been a bit lonely.”

Ah. There it was. Edelgard realized Dorothea was in fact upset. Byleth seemed to realize as well, suddenly knitting her brow.

“I came as quickly as I could,” Byleth said. “We should all eat dinner in the dining hall, like old times. We can have a nice chat then, and maybe even have some tea after?”

“That sounds lovely, Professor.”

“I suppose we have no time to spare,” Byleth turned to Edelgard as she spoke. “I was thinking we should check the catacombs first.”

“Actually,” Dorothea cut in. “I might have a lead for you. We found the key to unlock Rhea’s study. Actually, it’s good that you’ve come, Edie, because I’m certain you’ll want to see it.”

“That sounds like an excellent plan, Dorothea. Let’s investigate.”

As they entered the main hall of the monastery, Constance regained her chipper demeanour.

“Ooh, I was going to give the most amazing tour of Abyss,” she informed them. “I’m disappointed we’re not going there first. There is a whole entire library of forbidden information that we could use. I was going to show you some very interesting texts!”

“Oh yes, the shadow library in Abyss,” Edelgard pondered with interest. “Hubert mentioned it to me. I’m sure he’s already taken a look through for interesting documents.”

“I’ve spent far more time down there than Hubert ever has,” Constance retorted, pronouncing his name with venom. “I’m absolutely certain I’ve found more documents than he has.”

“I’m sure that’s true,” Byleth responded. “Actually, Constance, we don’t have much time to spend here. Do you think you can head down there now and start sifting through the documents?”

“It would be my pleasure! I’ll compile an amazingly useful and succinct report on everything I find down there, and select the most important ones for Her Majesty’s reading. I’ll start at once!”

“That would be a great help, thank you.”

Constance scampered away from the group, towards some hidden entrance to Abyss. The remaining three women climbed several flights of stairs until they reached the third floor of the monastery. The door to the Archbishop’s old bedroom remained closed. Instead, Dorothea brought them down a hall that led to the private garden terrace.

“I only ever came up here one time,” Edelgard commented as they walked. “Right after we began to occupy the monastery, just after the soldiers had done their initial sweep. I had to come up at least once out of curiosity, but I never came back. I never liked the feeling I got when I came up here.”

“I came up here sometimes to get away from it all,” Dorothea explained as they walked. “It does feel a bit awkward to be here, but the garden has a lovely view. And it’s outside, so it feels less… intimate.”

“Yes,” Byleth agreed. “The view is nice.”

“But you came up when the archbishop was alive,” Edelgard noted. “Rhea invited you here, didn’t she? To chat.”

“You noticed.” Byleth seemed taken aback. “Yes, she did. I came up several times after we took over. I’ve never noticed a weird feeling up here.”

“Perhaps you felt more welcome because Rhea had always welcomed you here.”

“But I was her most hated enemy in the end, wasn’t I?” Byleth mused. “She wanted to rip my heart out of my chest with her own hands.”

“She did, didn’t she? Such strange wording she used… I can’t help but feel it was a deliberate reference to your… condition. But, in any case Byleth, even if you were connected to Rhea in some way, that doesn’t mean you’re alone now that she’s gone. You have me, and the rest of the Black Eagles standing behind you. You’ll always have me.”

Byleth didn’t respond, but merely kept striding forwards in silence. Dorothea looked a bit awkward at the gap in conversation. Edelgard sighed. Luckily, just then they had arrived at the locked door off of the hallway. It was a plain, wooden door and it looked fairly nondescript. Edelgard would have walked right past it without a second thought if Dorothea hadn’t stopped and retrieved a key from her pocket.

“So, how did you find this room Dorothea?” she began again, eager to change the subject.

“Well, I noticed the door while I was heading to the terrace. My task is quite boring while I’m waiting between messages, so I passed the time studying a map of the monastery.” Dorothea’s veiled complaint about her post made Edelgard wince. “I was curious what lay behind the door, so I tried to find it on the map, but it wasn’t marked yet. I suppose we hadn’t canvassed it yet because it was locked, but I simply tried a few of the keys the guards had found, and voila!”

She placed the key in the lock and pushed the door open. The room was well-lit by several large windows that looked out on the monastery below. It appeared to be a workstation. There were several desks, piled with papers, and shelves that held books, as well as flasks and other equipment for distilling materials. The furniture was elegant, white and ornate, and the desks carefully matched the chairs. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust, spoiling the luxurious effect.

“I guess this might have been her office,” Byleth commented, taking a solemn step into the room.

“I bet Rhea has many secrets hidden in here for us to dig out. Dorothea, you didn’t report this to the guards?”

“Well, I just found it the other day. I didn’t want to let just any old guard know about it. I figured Rhea might have hidden some sensitive information, so I waited to share it with someone I know I can trust.”

“Thank you for your discretion, that was very wise.”

They cautiously began to scan the room for useful information. Edelgard was drawn to a workbench first, with a set of mechanical tools laying on top of it. They appeared to be implements for performing delicate tasks, such as a small scalpel and a magnifying glass. They were almost surgical in their appearance. She realized she should record as much as possible and fetched a small scroll of parchment and a stick of graphite. She placed it down on the corner of the desk, careful not to disturb anything, and made a quick sketch of the room.

“Edie, that’s a pretty accurate sketch, I didn’t know you could draw,” Dorothea exclaimed, looking over her shoulder. “When did you learn that?”

“Oh,” the Emperor blushed. “It’s just… a hobby. I had some training in the classics and the arts as a child, and I liked sketching. When I had any spare time...”

“How artistic!” Dorothea sounded surprised. “You’ll have to show me some of your pieces, I’m intrigued!”

Blushing, Edelgard turned back to focus on the task at hand. She sketched some of the larger instruments on the shelves, then picked up the scalpel, wrapped it in her handkerchief, and deposited it back into her satchel. She wanted to preserve as much as possible for Hubert and the other scholars to study. Next, she turned to the cabinet below the desk. It was not locked, and upon opening it, she found a large file of neatly preserved papers. She withdrew the full stack, eager to leaf through it.

“I found something interesting,” Byleth called from behind her. “These golems… we’ve seen them before. This looks like it could be a schematic… But I don’t know what language this is, I’ve never seen it before.”

The paper was inscribed with a foreign alphabet. It didn’t look like the letters of Fodlanese, or even the writing from Almyra or Brigid that Edelgard had studied. The shapes were more geometric, with pictograms mixed in here and there.

“Let’s take it with us.” Edelgard instructed. “Perhaps someone can decipher it.”

“Come to think of it,” Byleth mused as she stared at the drawing. “Don’t these golems resemble the Titanus that we faced in Arianrhod? I mean, I know we’ve seen these golems too, when fighting against the church, but still.”

“You’re right. Maybe there are similarities between the two. That could be useful in the future…”

Edelgard turned to the various stacks of papers she had collected. She mostly skimmed through pages of writing in the foreign language, but on the cover of one set of papers, she did find another schematic. Taking a look at the diagram, she almost dropped the paper in shock. It seemed to depict the crest stone that the sword of the creator once held: the crest of flames. Wordlessly, she passed the collection of papers to Byleth, who grabbed it and studied it with wide eyes.

“We’d better take this one with us too,” Byleth said finally. She carefully rolled up the document and stowed it away.

After they had spent some time poring through the study, Edelgard decided there was much too much for them to sift through on their own. A group of imperial troops could canvass the room much more efficiently. She faced a dilemma: It was possible that indiscreetly sending troops to this room would mean feeding all of Rhea’s secrets directly to their enemies. There were probably many spies amidst the imperial troops. She decided she would send up a trusted ally, Constance perhaps, to comb through everything sensitive before sending in other troops to collect the rest of the information.

The sun was beginning to set as they decided to finish their task, casting the monastery in a golden light. On their way back to their quarters, they stopped by the dining room as the professor had promised. The three of them sat at a table in the hall, just like they had in old times. Byleth had been wearing a serious expression ever since finding the diagram of the crest stone of flames, but Edelgard was happy to see a small smile break onto her face from time to time as she caught up with her friends.


	4. Random Chance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some Edelthea in this chapter!
> 
> I like Edeleth as well, but I was really charmed by these two and their supports ^^

They spent the night at the monastery, in their old quarters. Edelgard insisted on having Byleth take her old room. She pretended it was for the professor’s comfort, but in reality she knew Hubert had selected these two rooms because the walls were thin and he could easily hear any commotion that might be going on in her room. She would take up his post, and sleep in his room tonight. Setting her bag down, she noted with amusement the holes he had made in the walls. It appeared he had run some of his magical cable through the walls: she had seen him use a similar mechanism to set up alarms in the palace. If it had been anyone else in this room, she would have felt incredibly violated, but Hubert’s presence was as comfortable and unnoticeable as a shadow to her. Other men might have taken advantage of their location to spy on her, but she was confident he would avert his eyes long before he could see anything obscene. She chuckled to herself under her breath, picturing him blushing and turning away at the mere suggestion.

However, thinking back on some conversations with the professor in that room, she did feel a slight pang of fear about what he might have overheard. Still, she knew her embarrassment ended there, since he wouldn’t have repeated it to a soul. If anything, he was probably eavesdropping on the professor’s words so that he could gather intel on her. She wondered if he had approved of what he heard in those conversations… It definitely seemed that he had warmed up to the professor since then, so she supposed he must have. Truthfully, even though he had tried to play it off like he didn’t care, she could tell he was incredibly happy when Byleth had returned after her five year absence. She rarely saw him crack a smile as wide as he did on that day of the cancelled Millenium festival.

Dorothea had chosen to bunk in her old room as well. Edelgard realized she owed her an apology for unwittingly sending her away from Enbarr. She left her own room, shouldering past the guards posted on the outside. They were there on her request: assassination would be a logical next attack for their enemies so she ensured she always had a night watch. Her friend’s room was on the lower floor, so she descended the stairs at the end of the corridor before turning into the lower dormitory. She rapped on the door with a gloved hand.

“Dorothea? It’s me, I just wanted to chat.”

“Is that you, Edie? Just give me one second, I’m indecent.” It was a moment before Dorothea arrived at the door, clad in a silk robe. Her hair was loose and flowing around her, catching golden highlights from the candlelight. Edelgard paused momentarily to take in the sight, which made Dorothea laugh. “What, have I stunned you?”

“I… I just wanted to apologize,” she sighed, breaking off her gaze to look at the floor. “I realize it sounded like a bad excuse earlier when I said Hubert insisted on sending you away... Which is because it was. The truth is, I didn’t really read his proposals at all, I just signed them without thinking. It was unacceptable behaviour coming from the Emperor.”

“Edie, I think you’re reading too much into this. I wasn’t really that offended by being sent away from the capital. I’m happy to help with whatever I can. We’ve been fighting for so long… I just want to do whatever I can to help put an end to it.”

“Dorothea, I’m glad to hear you say that. If I’m being honest, I haven’t been myself at all these last few weeks. I’ve just been so stressed...”

“Why don’t you come in? We can chat more freely.”

“I shouldn’t, but… I will. Thank you, Dorothea. You are too kind.”

She ushered her through the door into her small chamber. Several candles were lit on the desk, casting them in a rather intimate light. Edelgard sat on the bed and Dorothea pulled the chair up to face her so they could continue chatting.

“So, the professor’s condition is stressing you out? I know you really care for her…”

“Yes. Not only her physical condition, but something seems… off. She’s been very quiet, ever since the final battle. I’m worried. Well, it sounds a bit silly to say out loud, but now that it’s all over and Rhea is dead... I’m worried that she regrets the path that she chose.”

“Well, the professor was free to make her own decisions. I’m sure she chose the one she thought was right.”

“That’s true, but I’m not so sure. She seems so eager to uncover the story of her past, and I can’t quite blame her for that. But... What if she never truly realized her connection to Rhea, until she finally had to kill her? Or, even before that, it’s possible she only stayed with us the whole time because she thought it was too late to turn back. With Seteth and the Church turned against her, what if she felt she had betrayed her true family and could never return to them? What if she only stayed because she had nowhere else to go?”

“The professor could have left at any time, and we’ve faced Rhea many times before. The first time was right after the war was declared, remember? Byleth chose to stay with us, and to come back after her absence. She could easily have vanished into obscurity after waking up, but she didn’t. She wanted to fulfill her promise to you, to all of us.”

“Perhaps what I’m afraid of isn’t only how the professor feels. It seems.. it seems that her fate should not have led her here, to our side. After all, she seemed all but predestined to lead the Church of Seiros, not to fight them. I can’t shake the feeling that this was never meant to be. And, if this is not the professor’s destiny, what was my destiny?”

“Well, your destiny is to pursue your dream, Edie. Isn’t it? I’m not sure what else it could be.”

“Indeed, I can’t imagine an alternate future where I didn’t strive as hard as I could, whether or not the professor was by my side. I just don’t know what kind of person I would be. What would I have become?”

“We all could have taken a million different paths. And, Edie, none of that matters. I can see what kind of person you are now, in this moment. I mean, what is life itself other than a big collection of random occurrences? It’s silly to worry about destiny at all. Was it my destiny to become a songstress, or was it simply luck that led that nobleman to overhear my singing voice?”

Dorothea sighed, looking down at her hands, before continuing.

“Truth be told, I’m absolutely convinced that nothing but a hair’s thin chance of luck separates my life from the plight of any other orphan out on the streets. My life is a product of total randomness, and maybe the professor’s was as well. But you, Edie, you’re different. A thousand years of history is compelling you to action and deciding your path. Since you’re so dedicated to seeing your vision through, no random bump in the road can cause you to change your mind. Maybe that’s what attracted the professor? Maybe, after feeling like your life is just being buffeted around from place to place by the whims of fate, it feels good to take a stand and be a part of something definite?”

“Dorothea… is that the way you feel as well?”

“It’s more than that. My whole life, I’ve been grasping at air. I feel like I’ve been falling, clawing desperately for any handhold I can grab. But now… I’m not falling anymore. I’m caught in a swiftly-flowing current that’s pushing me ever forward. And I’m grateful you created that for me. Not that it hasn’t been tough. Every life I have to take breaks my heart, and I wish to the goddess that there weren’t any more battles to be fought, or blood to spill.” A tear began to roll down Dorothea’s face.

“I swear to you, I wish that too. I know I’ve broken your heart, and the heart of Fodlan many times over. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of it. I absolutely believe with all of my heart that our actions were necessary to free us from tyranny. And, I promise you, I won’t stop now until we’ve finally achieved true peace. The lies I’ve told, the blood I’ve spilled… I can’t stop working until our sacrifices were not in vain.” 

Edelgard could feel a tear welling up in her eye as well. It wasn’t a feeling she had experienced often, but that seemed to be changing lately.

“I know that,” Dorothea replied. “But, I can’t stop feeling what I feel. In any case, I would choose heartbreak by your side over being lost and purposeless any day.”

“Dorothea… I would never ask you to stop feeling. I’m lucky to have such a person by my side, who isn’t afraid to face what is in their heart instead of sealing it all away like I have done.” She sighed. “Byleth… I started to believe I could face my true self because she had so much faith in me, despite the odds. When she came back to us out of the blue, it was like my deepest dream had come true. This past year, I’ve been so focused on not losing her again... But, I think I’ve forgotten that I have others by my side that I can depend on as well.”

“Yes, it’s easier to listen to what your heart is telling you if you don’t have to face it alone.” Dorothea rose now, and took one of Edelgard’s gloved hands in her own. “And you won’t have to face it alone as long as I’m around.”

“Thank you, Dorothea. You’ve helped me more than you could know.”

Not wanting to impose for too long, she said good night to Dorothea and returned to her chamber. She stopped to ask the guard whether the professor was still in her chamber.

“Yes Your Majesty, she hasn’t left the room. I believe she’s slumbering soundly.”

Now that she listened more carefully, she could indeed hear the professor’s low snores through the closed door. Disappointed, she thanked the guard and retired to her room. She felt restless, and had been hoping to entertain herself with a conversation, but she didn’t want to disturb her travelling partner. With a sigh, she headed over to the small bookshelf and selected what looked like the dullest of Hubert’s old history tomes. Hopefully the dense text would put her straight to sleep. All of the things she wanted to say to Byleth still felt painful inside of her, but after talking to Dorothea, at least she didn’t feel alone.


	5. Applied Magical Mechanics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> disaster hubert
> 
> There is an OC featured in this chapter, but only because I needed to flesh out the Sorcery Engineers. There won't be too much focus on this character in future chapters, or in general.

It was later on the same night, long after Edelgard had finally drifted off to sleep, when Hubert finally finished his calculations. As she slumbered peacefully, he began yet another sleepless night spent dealing with urgent tasks. Clutching the papers in his hand, he strode down the dark corridors of the depths of the palace at Enbarr.

He arrived at a heavy wooden door off of one of the corridors, and rapped on it sharply with a gloved hand. He heard someone stir. After a few moments, the door creaked open. The woman he was looking for stood behind it, cautiously peering out at him.

"Oh! It's you!" she started a bit as she recognized him. "Umm, please give me one second."

"Certainly," he replied.

She closed the door once more. He waited for a moment, before he finally heard her undo the chain lock. He was quite bemused by her casual address, it was rather brazen to address your commanding officer as "it's you," but personally, he had never cared too much for formal titles. Of course, he would not tolerate any disrespect of Her Majesty the Emperor, but as long as people listened to his commands, he didn't pay too much heed to what they called him. She swung the door open and stepped into the doorway. She was wearing her nightclothes and had her hands crossed over her chest, hands gripping her sides awkwardly. He did his best to avert his eyes from her dress.

"My apologies for descending on you without notice, Ekaterina," he addressed her. "But, I'm afraid the matter is quite urgent. It cannot wait until morning."

"That's okay, I understand."

"May I step in for a moment? I'd like to go over it, if you don't mind." The tone of his voice made it clear that this was not a request but a command.

He caught a flash of fear across her face, but she quickly composed herself. Stepping back from the doorway, she beckoned him inside. He followed her to the solid wooden desk that stood in the corner. Hubert wrinkled his nose. The room smelled of cats, and he had never been a fan of house pets. Still, it was late and he wanted to focus on the task at hand, so he made no comment.

The desk was strewn with papers covered with various diagrams and equations. Some of the equations were familiar to Hubert, but some seemed new. He assumed they were still a work in progress. Ekaterina cleared off a spot on the desk, and he laid down the papers he was carrying.

"I've just finished these calculations. I need you to check over them for errors, and ensure the result is correct. It is of utmost importance that you don't mention this to anyone."

"Of course," she replied. "Let me take a look."

She bent down to carefully scan the pages. His work was meticulous as always. He noted that she lingered on the diagrams he had drawn, she studied them carefully to give context to the numbers. Then, she scanned through his calculations. Her expression was cautious, and she stared at him for a moment as if she wasn't sure how to phrase a question.

"Can I ask what this represents?" she finally asked, her voice quiet. "I don't mean to pry - it's just that I think I can do a better job checking for errors if I understand what the numbers represent. That way I'll have a better idea what a reasonable value should look like."

Hubert considered this. He wanted to make sure their enemies didn’t catch wind of what he was planning, which was why secrecy was so important. He had not even mentioned to Edelgard that he was carrying this out, simply because there was no need to inform her yet. But, she did make a good point that it is much easier to understand the math if you know what it is supposed to represent, and it was absolutely key that his calculation was as accurate as possible.

He didn’t quite believe that she was a spy for Those Who Slither in the Dark, unless there had been some quick body-swapping incident that they pulled right under his nose. He had a good idea of the woman’s history, ever since she was a child. They were around the same age, but House Vestra had kept tabs on her family for generations.

Ekaterina von Ashby hailed from the Ashby house, a minor noble house of Enbarr who were renowned for producing scholars and engineers. They had fallen into disgrace as of late, at the hand of her pious father who refused to acknowledge that any power existed other than the divine rule of the goddess. Their house and title were stripped from them due to his refusal to pay Imperial taxes. Hubert’s father had stepped in to act as patron for Ekaterina and her three sisters to attend sorcery school, which had conveniently placed them in debt to House Vestra. After the war broke out, Hubert was able to hire her into his service and pay her a salary which allowed her sisters to remain in school. There was no denying it was a form of ransom, which might make her willing to betray him out of spite… But as far as he could tell, she seemed to be genuinely grateful for the opportunity. The only animosity he could detect from her was towards her sanctimonious father, whom she blamed for her current position as a pauper.

There were precious few people in the palace who had the background to assist him with such a task, and even fewer whom he trusted. Perhaps Lysithea had studied the necessary mathematics, and had the requisite knowledge of dark magic, and they had known her since their academy days. But, Lysithea was a minister of the Empire in her own right, and Hubert lacked the authority to barge into her room in the middle of the night. He wanted this done now. He preferred to see his tasks through to the end once they were begun, and didn’t want to lose momentum.

“Alright, I’ll fill you in,” he decided. “But I will reiterate this: you must tell absolutely no one about this work. Not even the Emperor herself if she were to ask you.”

"Yes, of course, I only want to be as accurate as possible. Thank you."

“You are aware that a magic device that resembled a… pillar of light… was dropped on Arianrhod,” he began, leaning down to peer over the equations himself. “I want to calculate where the projectile originated. After the pillars struck, I quickly jotted down some approximate observations of the speed and angle of incidence of the beams. I returned to the ruins of Arianrhod after the fact as well, to take some additional measurements, including the rate at which the residual energy falls off. You’ll find that information at the top of the first page here. I also estimated some margins of error for my guesses, those are listed at the end.”

Her eyes had widened as he spoke, and she remained silent, head bowed in a solemn manner.

“I see. You were very diligent. So, you believe it was sent from afar as a projectile?”

“Indeed. I believe it could have been sent from hundreds of miles away. I’d like to narrow the point of origin to less than a dozen square miles or so. I have included some second-order effects from the magical energy interfering with the planet’s energy field, I think it helps with the accuracy, especially over such a long distance. I believe I’ve come up with a decent estimation of the magical energy of the pillars.”

“A few square miles is kind of a tall order over such a large distance… But it does sound like you were able to collect a bunch of measurements, so that’s good. I’ll double check and make sure everything is sound.”

“Excellent,” he said, taking a step back. “How long do you think it will take?”

“Well, maybe an hour or so?” she responded. A thoughtful look fell over her face, and she fell silent for a moment or two. “If you’re planning on waiting... I could make you some coffee, if you want? I have a coffee press down here. I also… umm… Well, I noticed your favourite coffee was the Dagdan blend, and I happen to have some.” she finally ventured.

Hubert jumped back in surprise. Composing himself, he scowled in thought, peering down at his subordinate. How could she possibly have observed his habits in such detail without him noticing? What could she possibly be planning by observing his coffee habits? His stomach sank at the thought that he had potentially misjudged her. It had been a mistake to hand over his calculations. He quickly calculated whether or not he could take them back now, but he had already deliberated for too long.

"Umm, never mind, never mind," she repeated. Her cheeks had coloured and she bowed her head, avoiding his gaze. "I'll finish up and get them back to you as soon as possible."

He figured that grabbing the papers now would be too conspicuous. In any case, she had already looked over the papers. If she was an agent of the enemy, she would already be able to tip them off about what he was planning, even if he recovered the papers now. No, it was wiser to pretend like everything was normal at this point. He could simply observe her closely over the next few days and gather more information. Resigned to his decision, he turned to leave.

"Good. Leave the papers in my office as soon as you're done."

He walked through the door and she closed it behind him. After he heard her lock the chain, he leaned against the wall of the corridor, breathing deeply for a moment. How could he have been so foolish? He should have kept a closer eye on his associates to ensure they couldn't spy on him for the enemy. What other possible reason could this woman have for taking such an interest in him?

It was difficult to retain trustworthy allies. Hubert's preferred method of ensuring loyalty was through blackmail, but that brought on its own problems, namely it tended to breed hostility towards him. It was exhausting having to constantly work around the fact that he could be betrayed at any instant, duplicating work and hiding important details. He felt a real punch to the gut at Ekaterina's potential betrayal. Since she had rejected her religious zealot father and the church, she seemed to be a natural fit for their cause. On a personal level as well, he could relate to having a treacherous wretch of a father. She had been one of his most trusted sorcery engineers. It was clear he could trust in no one but himself, and of course, Lady Edelgard.

As he took the staircase back up, returning above ground, he was briefly drawn into reflection on his own childhood. People seemed to distrust him even then. The other children whispered rumours about him, accusing him of casting sinister curses. Indeed, he had first shown an aptitude for dark magic as a child. At the time, he was severely disappointed, afraid that wielding the branch of magic associated with heresy and destruction would bring down divine punishment on him. He was jealous of the other children, children who were taught horseback riding and who were destined to inherit the sacred relic of their house, all the other children seemed to fit in. He, on the other hand, had no crest and could only wield the most sinister of spells. Even worse, he was the heir to House Vestra, which meant he received lessons on spycraft and poisoning while other noble children learned about statecraft. In the past, he prayed to the goddess every night that he could instead be a shining knight, able to rush to protect Lady Edelgard and inspire trust and gratitude in her heart. What a waste of time that had been.

And then, Lady Edelgard was taken from him. It was clear that justice, peace, and trust only existed in childish fairy tales. He swore off his faith, and once able to see more clearly, embraced his talent for dark magic. Before long, he grew from a timid child into an awkward teenager. His sinister appearance would always prevent him from becoming a paragon of justice and virtue. He learned to lean into it. People thought he would be intimidating on first glance, which worked to his advantage. The fact that his entire persona was carefully crafted to keep others away made it all the more surprising when anyone was willing to trust him.

As he ascended the staircase, he began to feel more calm. He could watch Ekaterina closely over the next few days, but he didn’t need to take any action yet. It was possible she had other intentions than treachery, although he didn’t think it likely. Still, he was reminded of the last time someone had carefully observed his coffee preference: Byleth had gifted him with his preferred blend of beans, a long time ago at the monastery. He had reacted with the same amount of suspicion he had now, assuming it was part of some church plot to foil their plans. She hadn’t seemed intimidated by him at all, so he had doubled down and threatened her to make it clear her meddling was not appreciated. 

At the time his threats were serious, but now it was a fond memory. Over the years, he had grown to trust the professor’s intentions… In fact, as he reflected, he realized he trusted her absolutely. It was a strange feeling, but it helped to ease the panic caused by Ekaterina’s sudden suspicious behaviour. At least he was not completely not alone in the war.


End file.
